Most applications these days are at least somewhat network aware, but how do you protect those applications against common network security threats? Many developers are turning to OpenSSL, an open source version of SSL/TLS, which is the most widely used protocol for secure network communications. The OpenSSL library is seeing widespread adoption for web sites that require cryptographic functions to protect a broad range of sensitive information, such as credit card numbers and other financial transactions. The library is the only free, full-featured SSL implementation for C and C++, and it can be used programmatically or from the command line to secure most TCP-based network protocols. Network Security with OpenSSL enables developers to use this protocol much more effectively. Traditionally, getting something simple done in OpenSSL could easily take weeks. This concise book gives you the guidance you need to avoid pitfalls, while allowing you to take advantage of the library?s advanced features. And, instead of bogging you down in the technical details of how SSL works under the hood, this book provides only the information that is necessary to use OpenSSL safely and effectively. In step-by-step fashion, the book details the challenges in securing network communications, and shows you how to use OpenSSL tools to best meet those challenges. As a system or network administrator, you will benefit from the thorough treatment of the OpenSSL command-line interface, as well as from step-by-step directions for obtaining certificates and setting up your own certification authority. As a developer, you will further benefit from the in-depth discussions and examples of how to use OpenSSL in your own programs. Although OpenSSL is written in C, information on how to use OpenSSL with Perl, Python and PHP is also included. OpenSSL may well answer your need to protect sensitive data. If that?s the case, Network Security with OpenSSL is the only guide available on the subject.

Rating:

Rating:

Network Security with OpenSSL Review,  April 29 2003
Submitted by Antonio Rodriguez of the Columbia Java Users Group   [Respond | View]

OpenSSL is a terrific programming resource, but the online documentation on it

is hard to understand and index. This book brings most of it all together, and

provides enough examples to answer most of your questions.

One thing that it lacks is tie-ins with Java; most of its examples are in Perl

and Python. I'm currently trying to see if certain ideas can be implemented in Java.

A great book, and great read!




Network Security with OpenSSL Review,  March 29 2003
Submitted by Martin Cooper   [Respond | View]

Overall an excellent book. Before reading this book, I had played a little with OpenSSL, but found it very difficult to piece together the information needed to make use of the library. This book covered all of my problems, and gave me a good basic foundation in using the library. The only comment I can make is that the README file with the enclosed examples is a little unclear about how to compile the code, so ignore the chapter named files, and look in the ssl directory.




Network Security with OpenSSL Review,  October 01 2002
Submitted by Kevin J. Schmidt   [Respond | View]

This book is for anyone who wants to do real OpenSSL development. The authors have taken all the pain and headache out of trying to learn OpenSSL. The examples in this book are clear and easy to follow. Topics like PKI, certificate generation and management, and certificate authorities (CAs) are covered with the right amount of theory and practice.

Unlike one reviewer who had problems compiling the source code examples, I had no problem building and running all the examples on Linux. The only complaint I have is that each example is broken out into a seperate file, which can make it a little tough to piece back together, but even a novice C developer should have no problems.


Network Security with OpenSSL Review,  September 19 2002
Submitted by Peter Grossman   [Respond | View]

Examples are virtually unrunnable.

Specifically, there are no compile, link or platform instructions.

In addition, the examples are broken up into modules (Some without required #include's) and the required combination of source code to create a buildable app is left to the reader as an exercise.

I cannot imagine a platform upon which these examples could run.

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